Don’t be a traffic statistic

Sad stories can be found frequently along our highways. Sadly, someone in control of a situation lost control either through inattentiveness, lack of focus, or mechanical failure.

The result is a lost life. The Ohio State Highway Patrol is trying to track area traffic crashes to see if there’s a common thread to these terrible situations.

In Washington County, there have been eight fatal crashes reported by the Ohio State Highway Patrol thus far this year, which is two more than both in 2016 and 2015.

Fatal crashes across Ohio totaled 1,024 in 2012, 918 in 2013, 919 in 2014, 1,029 in 2015 and 1,054 in 2016.

Those are the cold, hard facts. Behind the numbers are the lives lost and friends and relatives feeling a great loss.

Often, too often, drugs or alcohol use are somehow mixed up as a cause. Whatever the reason for a crash, drivers must always be alert to the fact that an impaired driver could be just around the corner or that disaster could be bearing down at an otherwise safe intersection.

All numbers aside, we implore everyone on the road to be careful, look both ways then look again.